What Causes Weight Gain? Besides Your Determination

We blame Ammi ke haath ke parathay that are truly irresistible and sometimes we blame our own lack of motivation for making us gain those pounds, but what really is the case behind obesity besides all that? It’s true that we gain when we eat more than we burn, but most of the times it’s not your determination to eat and not work out that causes you to gain unnecessary weight, there are simply other factors as well. The pattern in which you consume food holds a lot of weightage when it comes to determining your weight gain and fat loss game. And just like any other biological drive that there is, your hunger and appetite, along with your eating drive too is purely biological in nature.

Maybe in your case of weight gain, maybe your lack of will power to cut it down just isn’t the reason. The following can be somewhat relatable.

Hormonal Imbalances

A lot of people might actually mistake hormonal issues for something which is related to khawateen only, however, this really isn’t the case. Even mard-hazraat might be gaining that belly fat because of a hormone called leptin which basically is present near your fatty cells. Ever heard of the hypothalamus? It’s basically a portion of the brain that deals with a lot of stuff including your appetite. What leptin does is that it sends an impulse to the hypothalamus telling it that there is enough fat intake for now and that eating needs to be stopped at this point. If your body is producing too much of leptin, it’s basically making your brain dheet to all those impulses, making your body resistant to it and therefore not making you stop anymore. Hence, you eat more and gain more.

Life Events

Ever heard of emotional eating? Most of us tend to eat more when emotionally we are at our lowest, while others tend to starve themselves because they ‘just don’t feel like it’. Traumatic life events such as divorce or death of a loved one can cause the increased release of cortisol into your blood that makes you feel hungrier when stressed and hence you eat more. A lot of people also gain weight when they quit smoking.

Insulin

Even though we mostly talk about insulin as being responsible for the storage of energy inside our bodies, this specific hormone also manages our fatty layers in terms of fat storage. Resistance to insulin causes fat deposition instead of fat management for active usage in the body. Also, if you are fond of consuming sweet and sugary foods a lot, this may also hamper the insulin levels and cause resistance; ultimately leading to obesity.

Similarly, certain prescribed medication may also cause weight gain, these medicines particularly include antipsychotic drugs and some anti-depressants as well. Certain medical conditions such as a hyperactive thyroid are also pretty known causes of gaining those pounds. Therefore, you may want to check with your doctor/therapist first before making your mind about the pills and the dieting.